Georgia Gets Ready to Report on Climate Change

Representatives of the Georgian government, civil society and academic institutions attended a working meeting on September 26, 2017, to discuss Georgia’s regular reports to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC). 

Eka Grigalava, Deputy Minister of Environment and Natural Resources Protection of Georgia, and Shombi Sharp, Deputy Head of UNDP in Georgia, opened the working meeting with welcome remarks.

“Georgia’s strategic response to climate change includes a focus on transitioning towards low-carbon, green development, which will in turn bring significant benefits to people across the country.  Yet to transform this defining developmental challenge into an opportunity, comprehensive and accurate information is the first step,” Shombi Sharp said.    

Grigalava highlighted that Georgia’s reports to the UN Convention on Climate Change include valuable information about the environmental challenges faced by the country as well as sustainable development in general in economy, infrastructure, agriculture and urban development.   

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) and the Paris Agreement are the largest international treaties to frame the world’s response to the negative effects of Climate Change. All countries signing these international documents, Georgia among them, are obliged to engage in climate action in different areas. Georgia plans to unconditionally reduce Greenhouse Gas emissions by 15 percent below the 'business as usual' scenario.

Georgia’s Fourth National Communication and the Second Biennial Report to the Convention will be prepared with assistance from UNDP and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), in close cooperation with the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Protection of Georgia. The reports will include a national inventory of Greenhouse Gas emissions.